Here's Xenoblade's battle system

At long last, we have some actual gameplay to go with our Xenoblade content. The promising Wii JRPG has existed only in the form of flashy cutscenes and still images thus far, but this new Japanese trailer reveals the battle system in all its glory.

Characters attack automatically, while the player selects various "Arts" such as "Light Heal" or "Shadow Eye" and other pompously named abilities. Allies tend to fight of their own accord, and as the characters battle, they fill up a "Party Gauge" that allows for "Chain Attacks" to be used.

The character with "Vision" can see into the future and this allows players to anticipate attacks in order to keep a better watch on battle. By having a vision and learning which characters will take damage, they can plan their actions accordingly. An interesting idea for sure, if done right.

I'll reserve judgment on Xenoblade until I get it. I can't say I'm a huge fan of battle systems where the game itself gets to play more than you do, but we'll see if it can strike the rare balance between gameplay and quasi-interactive cutscene that many RPGs of the ilk fail to do.